Losses suffered by Aussies to scams jumped by 80% compared to 2022
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Australians reported a loss of AU$3.1 billion to scams in 2022. Out of this amount, AU$1.5 billion was lost to investment scams. The number released by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) shows that the losses increased by 80% compared to what was reported during the previous year.
Aussies reported an AU$3.1 billion loss to scams in 2022
The highest amount was lost to investment scams. Aussies also reported losses of AU$229 million to remote access scams and another AU$224 million to payment redirection scams. Traditional bank transfers remained the most popular method used by scammers.
The total number of scams reported in the country includes data compiled from the complaints obtained from multiple platforms such as the Australian Financial Crimes Exchange, IDCARE, Scamwatch, ReportCyber, and other government agencies.
The Deputy Chair at the ACCC, Catriona Lowe, commented on this development saying, “Australians lost more money to scans than ever before in 2022, but the true cost of scams is much more than a dollar figure as they also cause emotional distress to victims, their families and businesses.”
Lowe further said that scammers were becoming more sophisticated in their tactics. As such, there was a coordinated response from governments, law enforcement, and private industry to tackle scams more effectively.
The Scamwatch report showed that the number of scams declined to 6.5% last year to 239,237. On the other hand, financial losses were up 76% to over AU$569 million. The losses suffered by each victim increased by 50% in 2022 to an average of around AU$20,000.
The recent report also demonstrated that scammers were becoming more sophisticated and used technology to lure and deceive victims. Some are even impersonating regulators and enforcement agencies to steal funds.
Lowe noted that the ACCC had noticed a significant increase in new tactics, making scams more difficult to detect. Some new tactics emerging include the impersonation of official phone numbers, email addresses, and the websites of legitimate organizations to scam texts appearing within the same conversation thread to mimic genuine messages.
Scammers are targeting vulnerable Aussies
The ACCC report mentioned that hackers increasingly targeted Aussies with vulnerability or hardship. People with disability suffered financial losses of AU$33.7 million, which was a 71% increase. On the other hand, the indigenous people posted losses of AU$5.1 million, representing a 5% increase.
The other massive losses were reported by diverse communities, with a loss of AU$56 million, representing a 36% annual increase. The losses suffered by small and micro businesses increased by 95% to AU$13.7 million. This shows that small businesses were also becoming a target of scammers.
People from culturally and linguistically diverse communities suffered the most financial losses through multiple scams. These people accounted for over a quarter of all the total losses linked to identity theft. They also accounted for nearly a third of the losses linked to pyramid schemes.
